HOW DID Elvis Presley HAVE AN IMPACT ON SOCIETY IN THE 1950's?

Answer 1

Presley was to music what James Dean was to film: a rebel who personified what cool was to guys and defined what hot was to women.

Before Elvis tore open the music scene, teens were struggling with near comotose consciousness states with the soothing strains from Glenn Miller brass bands, popularized in the 1940's.

Elvis woke up teens world-wide. Presley's looks, wild gyrations on stage and his to-this-day unique voice unearthed taboo thoughts (and sensations) long suppressed by the "new" generation of American teens.

And with this rise of teen rebellion, Elvis was blamed by the "Moral Majority" of the 50's for this wanton new sound of "Rock n' Roll" that also signaled the onset of the pre-jet age of Americana: we were being prepared to boom-emerge from the dusty post-Western Frontieer age of social life with the introduction of remote control TV's, boxcar fast food cafes, Route 66 and the "space race".

Elvis was a part of that too.....as he was a part of our personal lives.

Answer 2

Elvis Presley In The 1950s

Answer 3

Because he was the "KING" his music, his hip swaying, HIM. He was all that a girl could dream of, Tall, dark and handsome. He came from a poor family and made his way to the top. He was, is and always will be the "KIng of Rock and Roll"

Answer 4

You should really do your own homework

By the spring of 1956, Presley was fast becoming a national phenomenon[33] and teenagers came to his concerts in unprecedented numbers. When he performed at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair in 1956, 100 National Guardsmen surrounded the stage to control crowds of excited fans. The singer was considered to represent a threat to the moral well-being of young American women. The Roman Catholic Church denounced him in its weekly magazine in an article headlined "Beware Elvis Presley."[34]

In an interview with PBS television, social historian Eric Lott said, "all the citizens' councils in the South called Elvis '****** music' and were terribly afraid that Elvis, white as he was, being ambiguously raced just by being working-class, was going to corrupt the youth of America."[35] Robert Kaiser says he was the first who gave the people "a music that hit them where they lived, deep in their emotions, yes, even below their belts. Other singers had been doing this for generations, but they were black."[36] Therefore, his performance style was frequently criticized. Social guardians blasted anyone responsible for exposing impressionable teenagers to his "gyrating figure and suggestive gestures." The Louisville chief of police, for instance, called for a no-wiggle rule to halt "any lewd, lascivious contortions that would excite the crowd."[37] Even Priscilla Presley confirms that "his performances were labeled obscene. My mother stated emphatically that he was 'a bad influence for teenage girls. He arouses things in them that shouldn't be aroused.'"[38]

According to rhythm and blues artist Hank Ballard, "In white society, the movement of the butt, the shaking of the leg, all that was considered obscene. Now here's this white boy that's grinding and rolling his belly and shaking that notorious leg. I hadn't even seen the black dudes doing that."[39] Presley complained bitterly in a June 27, 1956, interview about being singled out as “obscene”.[40] Due to his controversial style of song and stage performances, municipal politicians began denying permits for Presley appearances. This caused teens to pile into cars and travel elsewhere to see him perform. Adult programmers announced they would not play Presley's music on their radio stations due to religious convictions that his music was "devil music" and to racist beliefs that it was "****** music." Many of Presley's records were condemned as wicked by Pentecostal preachers, warning congregations to keep heathen rock and roll music out of their homes and away from their children's ears (especially the music of "that backslidden Pentecostal pup.") However, the economic power of Presley's fans became evident when they tuned in alternative radio stations playing his records. In an era when radio stations were shifting to an all-music format, in reaction to competition from television, profit-conscious radio station owners learned quickly when sponsors bought more advertising time on new all "rock and roll" stations, some of which reached enormous markets at night with clear channel signals from AM broadcasts.

In August, 1956 in Jacksonville, Florida a local Juvenile Court judge called Presley a "savage" and threatened to arrest him if he shook his body while performing at Jacksonville's Florida Theatre, justifying the restrictions by saying his music was undermining the youth of America. Throughout the performance, Presley stood still as ordered but poked fun at the judge by wiggling a finger. Similar attempts to stop his "sinful gyrations" continued for more than a year and included his often-noted January 6, 1957 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show (during which he performed the spiritual number "Peace in the Valley"), when he was filmed only from the waist up.

Answer 5

his hip-shaking was provocative at the time, so that influenced society to think that being provocative was cool.

Answer 6

his music and his hip movement which made poeple fall in love with him and hate him.

Answer 7

he was the king of rock-n-roll back then,with long sideburns and that shake.

Answer 8

He made the little girls want some.

Answer 9

Google search it. there should be a ton of websites on it. :-)

Answer 10

Are you kidding?